


Rose Bush

by Koschei_Oakdown



Category: Green Lantern - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-05-06 04:06:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14633738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Koschei_Oakdown/pseuds/Koschei_Oakdown
Summary: Lots of misunderstandings





	Rose Bush

**Author's Note:**

> Credit to DC Comics

Searching Oa was a complete nightmare. Every time Hal spotted another Green Lantern, he'd get his hopes up, but it was never Sinestro, and he'd be back in his dejected state of mind. He knew this was desperate, it was unlikely Sinestro was even here, but he had to try something because he couldn't stand the silence any more. None of his calls had been returned, Sinestro hadn't been seen in several days, and Hal had drawn the one conclusion he could. Sinestro was ignoring him.

Why? Obviously Hal had messed up, again, and Sinestro was finished with him. For good. Nothing Hal was in any hurry to accept so here he was, trying to find Sinestro and offer anything he could to change the man's mind. Or at least, that had been the plan. A terrible plan, Hal realised in hindsight, because it seemed more and more likely Sinestro was hiding out on Korugar. And Hal was forbidden to go there. No aliens on Korugar, that had always been Sinestro's reason, and Hal respected that. Even if it would have been nice to see Sinestro's planet - but that was beside the point.

Hal might as well give up, because he would never see Sinestro again, not if the Korugarian didn't want to see him. And anyway, Hal didn't want to a nuisance, maybe it was better Sinestro was without him. After what had happened last time, Hal couldn't even really blame Sinestro for avoiding him. It was all his fault and he might as well accept his losses. Except there was always the back up plan of going to Korugar and finding Sinestro there. Beg for forgiveness, that kind of thing, hope he didn't fail at that too.

Uncertain what to do, Hal stopped, a few steps from the edge of a steep drop. More Green Lanterns were below him, but Hal knew they weren't Sinestro either. He'd already looked down there, and came up with nothing. Or at least, he was pretty sure he'd been here before. It was hard to tell when everything looked the same - alien. So he looked closer. And there, down below, inexplicably, was Sinestro. Easily recognisable by his arrogant posture as he dismissed several other Green Lanterns with a wave of his hand and strutted off like he owned the place. All intimidation and commanding presence.

Held stunned by the sight, Hal lost himself in a wonderful daydream where Sinestro wasn't mad at him and everything could just go back to the way it was before. He'd fly down, Sinestro would greet him, and they'd be off to some corner of the universe Hal had never been before. All the people he'd meet, all the lives he'd be part of, by the end, Sinestro would still be at his side, and it would start all over again. Now that was what dreams were made of. Unfortunately, this was reality and when Hal flew down, he tripped on his landing and fell flat on his face.

"Jordan?" Did that count as a greeting? Hal scrambled to his feet and brushed the hair out of his eyes. He almost stood to attention too but then thought better of it, and just brushed off his suit, unable to take his eyes off the other man. Even though it had only been a few days, he really had missed Sinestro and not just because of the amount of trouble he'd got himself into during the time. All the worrying when Sinestro hadn't replied to him had really built up and it was only now Hal considered that actually, being ignored could have been for any number of reasons. Sinestro could've been hurt or - but he wasn't.

"Hey," Hal replied, with a bit of an awkward smile. Was Sinestro angry at him? It really didn't seem like it but maybe the man was just schooling his expression. He was good at that. "Uh…" Hal had actually thought about this moment a lot, as much as he could in a few days anyway, and now he pulled out a bouquet of roses, from his pocket dimension, that he'd picked himself. Had the thorn scratches to show for it. "Here. For you," he elaborated, offering the flowers to Sinestro. To his relief, Sinestro took them.

"Dead plants? How… thoughtful," Sinestro mused, and yeah, that wasn't the reaction Hal had been hoping for. "I assume they hold some significance to you humans, yes?" One eyebrow quirked up in question and Hal was quick to nod in response.

"It's my apology," Hal explained further. "Well, part of it. I'm sorry, Sinestro. I didn't know the Guardians were going to blame you, and even if that's not why you've been ignoring me, I'm still sorry. It should never have happened, I should've just listened and then none of this would have happened. I really hope you can forgive me. I love working with you and I swear, it will never happen again."

The silence that followed was the worst thing so far, and Hal really just wanted to be over with this already. Sinestro adjusted his grip on the flowers, transferring them to his other hand, and then he asked, "You are apologising to me for saving the lives of myself and every other living being on that planet?"

That brought Hal up short and he hesitated, thinking back. Had that been what he'd done? "Maybe…?" There was no certainty in his answer. "You would've been fine without me, I'm sure. And even if I did do the right thing, you still got in trouble instead of me and I should've been able to stop that. I don't know why they decided it was your fault. Maybe I said something wrong." They'd seemed pretty convinced Sinestro was to blame even before the story had been told at the citadel.

"I can assure you, nothing said by you was responsible for my temporary suspension. I place no blame upon you." Temporary suspension? That would, Hal knew, explain the lack of contact he'd had with Sinestro. He felt kind of sheepish for his first automatic assumption. "Before we returned to Oa, I told the Guardians I was responsible for what happened and you would try to take the credit yourself in order to protect me. They believed me, and instead of the expulsion you would have received, I was merely returned to Korugar with my ring for a short period of time. Therefore, you have nothing to apologise for and if you ever feel the need to save an entire planet again, feel free to do so."

Hal gaped. There was no other response he could think of making. From Sinestro's point of view, it all seemed so obvious but on Hal's side, he'd been so sure he'd managed to do something wrong. But apparently, that had only been his apology. There was something else he needed to say. "Thank you." It was sincere, and it was from the bottom of his heart. He'd never considered what the consequences would've been to himself if Sinestro hadn't been wrongly blamed but it probably would've lost him his ring. And Sinestro.

"Any time," Sinestro dismissed, then glanced down at the flowers still in his arms. "What do I do with these?" Despite their journey from Earth to Oa, they still looked lovely and Hal was rather proud of them. Still it seemed a waste if there was no need to apologise anymore.

"Dunno," Hal shrugged. "I've never been given flowers before. Throw them away, if you want." Maybe next time, if there was a next time, Hal should get Sinestro a living flower. More impressive and useful. A nice big rose bush would do.

"Very well." Hal half expected Sinestro to throw the flowers away but instead, the Korugarian held them out to him. "Allow me to be the first to give you flowers. As a 'thank you' for saving my life." Surprisingly touched, Hal took the offered flowers and automatically brought them to his nose. The scent tickled his nostrils and he had to resist the urge to sneeze. Quickly, he pulled the flowers back down.

"Any time," Hal said, and smiled. Not too long ago, he'd been worried he'd never see Sinestro again but now here he was, falling easily back into the usual routine. Like nothing had happened. Except it had, and Hal would remember it wasn't so easy for Sinestro to pull away from him. 


End file.
